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New Blog - Freelance Writer's, Scrapbookers, Frugal Living

I finally got my everyday blog up and running. It is an awesome place for people who are looking to freelance from home. Lots of great writing tips, writing information and freelance writing stuff. Check it out! Plus plenty of info for working at home, scrapbooking, and frugal living - save money!

http://www.scribblesnscraps.com/blog

Confessions of a Freelance Writer

It is simple really. I am a freelance writer. Anyone who does this for a living, knows, understands, and can sympathize with how difficult it is to create a living doing something like freelance writing.

Since I was extremely young, I have written. Most writer's have. You don't just wake up one day and suddenly decide that. "hey, today I think I will be a freelance writer....hmmm... what do I write first." Nope. That is not how it works, though for some that is what they do.

For me writing was born inside. Deep within the walls of my heart. I wrote things for people all the time, and would hear compliments, praise and questions regarding why I wasn't trying to make a living doing this. Why wasn't I writing a book? Well, truth be told, I was writing a book. In fact, I've been writing books since I was only a child, and although until several years ago, did not share them with anyone, they were there.

When I decided several years ago that writing was the path I was going to follow, it was a rough road to follow. There were pot holes along the way, and rejections, just as any writer, freelance or otherwise knows, there are many rejections. But then the acceptances starting coming, and they began coming regularly. Suddenly one day I woke up and realized, holy cow, I'm actually a freelance writer, and I'm doing it, despite what others wanted.

See, I was a starter wife for my children's father. *sigh* He is happily remarried now and honestly, I love his new wife. Not so crazy about him, and if she only knew the truth about the things that went on in our marriage, she might not have been so quick to marry him.

What's funny about the entire thing is that almost a year ago, I began writing for www.families.com. Two months after I began, he actually contacted my boss with families.com. Yes, sad but true. In fact, the really depressing part of it all, and kinda pathetic outlook on his behalf, is that we have been divorced for six years. Do you not think perhaps he could have moved on? And beyond that, we barely speak, in fact, we hardly ever speak. So, he calls my boss and tells her I am plagiarizing my articles, that they are not mine. He tells her all sorts of things which I will not go into here. Thankfully I knew my boss, Lisa well. And she knew he was a "can short of a six pack" to coin her ever so eloquent phrase. She also knew that my writing was all original, and she had seen my work before. So, really my dear ex's plan backfired and I was quickly promoted to senior blogger and received a pay increase. So I guess, thank you is in order to the jerk. LOL

Anyway, why am I writing this when I am supposed to be writing a confessional? Because this is part of it. My ex husband NEVER supported me. He never once complimented my writing and never even believed I could do anything with it. Great eh? But still, I continued to write. I prayed that one day I would find myself writing and being paid, and you know what, it happened.

And now, I am in a loving relationship, with honestly the greatest man I have ever met, who supports me, believes in me, would give me anything I wanted and will stand behind/beside or anywhere else I want him to stand. No, not because he is a push over -hardly. He is just a very supportive, loving man. He believes in me. Why? Because he took the time to get to know my writing. He hasn't read everything I've written, but he has read a lot of it. He understands my writing style, he understands where my niche is and how important writing is to me. He continues to support me and proudly tells everyone we know that I am a freelance writer, and that I get paid well.

So what is the confession in all of this?

Don't get discouraged. Believe in yourself, and eventually others will believe in you too. Don't let people put you down, don't take criticism on your writing personally, instead use it to become a better writer. Ignore the angry, jealous people that might or might not surround you. Choose to be happy, to love what you do and to encourage others to do the same. That is all we can ask for in life.

Do you have a writer's confession to share? Just click on the comments and tell me about it! I'd love to hear it!

The Truth About Freelance Writing

It seems to be a myth amongst those who wish to stay at home with their children and still have an income coming in, that perhaps writing "stuff" is the answer. Yeah...well, not so much.

Here's the deal. You actually have to be good at writing to make a decent living out of it. You can start marketing yourself as a freelance writer, but if you cannot consistantly show that you are are a knowledgeable, trustworthy writer, with excellent writing skills, your career as a freelance writer will be short lived.

Many people begin posting on freelance writing job sites almost as soon as they decide they want to write. While this can be beneficial for some, putting together some writing samples to submit, or even getting your feet wet somewhere first, are excellent alternatives.

The dozens of writing opportunities that I have had in freelance writing have not come easy. I have had to market myself, show off that I can be responsible, organized and write cleary and precisely, and often work well with others. Freelance writing is not the job for just any SAHM or WAHM. You have to give writing it's fair shake in your busy day, and in addition be willing to spend countless hours researching, sometimes for no pay at all.

So is Freelance Writing the job for you? I cannot answer that, but you can. Take time to think about it, browse the different writing websites and figure out if you have what it takes to be a freelance writer!

Good luck!

Short Story Markets

I thought every so often I would add a list of great places to submit various genre's and types of work to.

Here is a great list of Short Story Markets

Epoch
Cornell University
251 Goldwin Smith Hall
Ithaca, NY 14853
(607) 255-3385 Ph
(607) 255-6661 Fx

This tri-annual literary journal accepts "well-written literary fiction, poetry, and personal essays". They welcome newcomers. They would like to see more Southern fiction (southern U.S.)
Contact: Joseph Martin, senior editor
Terms: Pays $5 to $10/printed page on publication for first rights. Byline is given. Offers 100% kill fee.
Submissions: Send complete manuscript by mail. No simultaneous submissions.

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Zoetrope: All-Story
all-story.com
The Sentinel Bldg.,
916 Kearny Street
San Francisco, CA 94133
(415) 788-7500
info@all-story.com
This quarterly specializes in the best of contemporary short stories.
Accepts: Literary short stories and one-act plays.
Contact: Francis Ford Coppola, publisher; Michael Ray, editor
Terms: Pays $1,000 for first serial rights. Byline is given.
Submissions: Send complete manuscript by mail (does not accept submissions June 1 - August 31). Accepts simultaneous submissions.


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Boulevard
richardburgin.net/boulevard
6614 Clayton Road, PMB 325
Richmont Heights, MO 63117
(314) 862-2643 Ph
(314) 862-2983 Fx
This tri-annual covers fiction, poetry and essays.
Accepts: "Original creative work [of 8,000 words maximum] by well-known authors, as well as by writers of exciting promise."
Contact: Richard Burgin, editor
Terms: Pays $20/page, minimum $150, on publication for first North American serial rights. Byline is given.
Submissions: Send complete manuscript by mail. Accepts simultaneous submissions.

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Glimmer Train
glimmertrain.com
Glimmer Train Press
1211 N.W. Glisan St., Suite 207
Portland, OR 97209
(503) 221-0836 Ph
(503) 221-0837 Fx
linda@glimmertrain.com
This quarterly of short literary fiction is accepting "well-written emotionally moving short stories" of up to 12,000 words.
Contact: Linda Swanson-Davies, co-editor
Terms: Pays $500 on acceptance for first rights. Byline is given.
Submissions: Submit via online form. Does not accept simultaneous submissions.

Article: Tips on Homeschooling Without Support

Just a clip of my article:

Are you interested in homeschooling your child, but you have little to no support from those around you? That's actually quite common for many when they get ready to homeschool. Learn how you can best deal when you have no support for homeschooling. Read more »

Eating Crow About Freelance Writing at Associated Content

I guess I am at a open mouth, insert foot spot. In fact, I am eating my own words from several weeks back. After this post, I wound up checking Associated Content out even further.

I was still wondering how it was going to benefit me at all, since I already had a pretty steady writing gig plus several freelance things.

However, I decided to write some articles for a content call they had. I felt the call was an easy one to do and didn't require a ton of research to complete.

Well, guess what? Every one of them (five total) got accepted for publication at their given rate. That was some serious pocket money I needed for the holidays.

So for anyone who I offended by comparing AC and CC I now totally understand how different the two sites are. It is true that Constant Content pays better if you set your articles high, but the waiting game is excruciating. It can be weeks or even months before you get a nibble. Wherease with Associated Content you usually get an offer within a few days. There is simply nothing better than seeing "Offer from Associated Content" in your email box!

At any rate, I now to date have FIVE articles published with AC - and two of those came today! YAY!

I have three in que to go, but several I still need to get up and posted so I can be in agony over the wait to see if they make an offer and it's not low-balled by the ridiculous CM (Content Manager) who constantly offers everyone $4 for any and all articles he makes an offer ON!

Talk to you all soon! Hey and go sign up for Associated Content. In fact, click on this link so I at least get credit for referring you! Please?!?!

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Writer's, Are You Looking To Freelance From Home?

Are you looking to work from the comfort of your own home? Are you a creative and innovative writer with fresh new ideas? Do you enjoy writing?

If you answered yes to any of these, here is a nice list of places you can submit your articles for payment or seek a job doing what you love. I will add as time permits.

activetradermag.com/submissions.htm

www.articleinsider.com

www.associatedcontent.com

beaguide.about.com/topics.htm

www.constant-content.com

www.freelancewriting.com

www.justarticles.com

www.keepitcoming.net

www.lifetips.com

www.manuscriptservices.co.uk/writers.shtml

www.methodshop.com

www.warriorforum.com/forum

www.writeforcash.com

www.writejobs.com

www.writersrow.com

writersweekly.com/viewforum.php?f=4

www.writerwrangler.com

www.writingassist.com

Constant Content (CC) vs. Associated Content (AC)

Deciding which one to list your stuff at can be a challenge. It seems lately, that I am learning more and more people enjoy the benefits of Associated Content, which I am not exactly sure I understand the reasoning behind.

Although I have never listed at Associated Content, I have listed at Constant Content. I have submitted three articles, all of which were accepted for their site. I have since sold two of the three articles and made $100.00 from that.

My profits off of Contant Content seem to be higher than those that list at Associated Content. It seems that AC only gives you something like $10.00 but then I have to look into it further. I guess I don't understand the difference between the two.

From the Associated Content Webpage:

If you're over 18 and a legal US resident, you can submit content for payment consideration. An AC Content Manager reviews the submission and emails an offer within five business days. The amount of the offer is based on topic, quality, competition and - very importantly - the Content Producer's track record of promoting their content and generating traffic for Associated Content. Payments range from $3-$20. The highest offers are placed on exclusive submissions that are specific, discoverable (match a possible search query) and consumer driven. If you are not satisfied, you can always decline an offer and remove your content from our system.

I actually think now I understand. You submit an article in length of about 400 words, and you wait. They contact you with an offer to purchase the content. They might offer you anywhere between $3.00 - $20.00 per submission. I would imagine when you are just starting out that your pay would be about $3.00 per article. Not bad if just starting out, but when I am getting paid already $4.00 for a 300 word article I am not understanding how that benefits me at first. Of course, I guess it's a nice way to make some extra cash. Upon reading further on the website and actually talking to a few people that submit to Associated Content, I understand that the more you publish, you gain "clout". Your goal of course is to be the highest clout (10) which I have yet to meet anyone who has made. That means that you are gaining over a million page hits for all submissions. I have met someone who has gained a clout five which is 5001-20000 page hits total. She also said her pay has increased since going up several clout numbers. Poor me, I'm still at clout 1. LOL Of course that could be because I have never submitted anything. I need to free up some time to do that I guess just to see if it works. Some people swear by AC.

As for Constant Content - from their website:

Getting your writing skills noticed is important when you're a freelance writer.

The site offers a two-fold method of making money with your writing talents. There is no pressure or quotas to meet. You only write about the subjects you feel comfortable with in your own timing. Content buyers at Constant-Content can request and purchase great articles while you, as a freelance writer, are allowed to have complete control over your writing time and efforts. It's a win-win situation!

Essentially I see Contant Content as a far more professional site. That is not to say that someone writing for Associated Content is NOT professional. I will never say anything like that. In fact, I sincerely see it as a great step to take as a writer no matter your future direction. However, I feel upon researching both that Contant Content is the type of place where although they bring the clients to you, it is still VERY much your responsibility to market yourself. Your writing would need to be good enough to warrant a $50.00 or more payment, than a $3.00 payment is all I mean.

For instance, I sold both of the two articles I wrote for Full Rights. Yes, that does mean I lose my own copyright and I sign the article over to whoever purchased it. With a Full Rights license it means I have sold the article to them and they may do whatever they want with the article. They may edit it. They may claim it as their very own. They may do whatever. It is no longer mine. In fact, it's like I was a ghost writer. But I am ok with that.

Reason that ghost writing works for me, is that on Constant Content they have this awesome little link you have where you can print a copy of the title of the article, what it sold for (Full Rights, Unique Rights, Free Usage, etc). It has your name in the author's field, it says the licensee's name or site or whatever information they provided, as well as the date it was purchased on. For me that's an excellent addition to my writer's resume - writing samples and clips. I am so thankful I have that.

So for the old age question CC vs. AC - which one should I post at? Why not both?

There isn't a right or wrong! Only that you aren't at either!

So post at both!

Beginning a Writer's Resume Part Two

Ok, in the previous article Beginning a Writer's Resume - Part One, we took a look at the first three sections of your writer's resume. Now we need to go past that.

WORK HISTORY:

Your work history might have absolutely nothing to do with the job you are seeking or with your writing at all. You still need to include it. It's important for a potential employer to see that you have had some type of employment and that you are dependable, reliable and well...."employable".

So you are probably wondering how this differs from a regular resume with job history listings. After all, didn't I tell you before that this is a skills based writers resume? Yes, I did. And this is how they differ in this section.

First, these need to be quick little tid bits from each job. You are not looking to list everything you would in a normal job history. You need to include your job title, the dates you were with the company, where it's located and a contact number. You should include your duties but summarize - try to keep it below 2 to 3 lines.

For most writer's they have been self-employed as a freelance writer for some period of time. This needs to be the very first listing in this section. This will also help to explain any gaps in your employment history.

Here is an example of this section:

Freelance Writer - March 1998 to present

St. Louis, Missouri

Senior Blogger at Families.com for scrapbooking and frugal living articles, guest spot articles on adoption, food, single parenting and travel. Content Producer at Associated Content (see attachments for website information), published eight articles in Scrapbooker America, regular article contributor to Frugal Living Sunshine Publication. (see attachments for copies).

Office Manager - September 2004 to May 2006

Technical Ultrasound

St. Louis, Missouri; Jason Fellows - (555)123-4567

Processed all client paperwork, established and organized complete filing system, created and maintained employer website, increased client base by more than 75% in five months, created and marketed advertising media

Preschool Director - January 2000 to September 2004

The Hillside Academy

St. Louis, Missouri; Stephanie Huewitt - (555)123-4567

Created, Coordinated and Established developmental programs appropriate for preschool age children, maintained constant state ratio, processed all paperwork, designed full curriculum, created and maintained employer website, created and marketed advertising media

I think it goes without saying, that if you can find any duty you were required to do in any job that you have held that relates to your writing, by all means LIST IT! Even if it is something as simple as writing up a monthly newsletter, or contributing to one.

*Do not list reasons for leaving prior jobs. And do not include any other negative information, about yourself or the employers. This sends a less than desireable message to potential employers.

EDUCATION:

Next step to include is education. Basically this is the same as a regular resume, and should look no different on your writer's resume, with the exception that this is a good location to include any extra trainings such as vocational training, on-the-job training, online courses that are relevant to the job you are seeking, workshops, classes, etc.

If you have spent any time at all perusing the writing and editorial jobs in your local paper, you will probably notice that many of them ask for a degree in writing (e.g., journalism, English, etc.).

This is not the time to give up. So maybe you don't have one. A lot of companies are more than happy accept experience in lieu of formal education, especially when it's a large amount of experience. So by all means, quit panicking and apply anyway. You didn't have the job before, so what do you have to lose?

AWARDS AND MEMBERSHIPS

You may be brand new to the whole field of writing, so perhaps you have nothing to include under this section. Leave it off the writers resume. However, this section is benificial to anyone who has received any awards relating to writing and editing. If you are a member of any writing or editorial societies, guilds or organizations, list those as well.

Well, you are done! If you have any other tips and suggestions, please feel free to share them in the comments field :D Thanks!

Related Articles:

Writer's Resume

Help! I Need a Writer's Resume

Beginning a Writers Resume Part One

Beginning a Writers Resume Part Two

Help! I need a Writer's Resume

When faced with the challenge of creating my own personal writer's resume, I panicked a little. In fact, I probably panicked a lot.

Sure, I have a regular resume. In fact, I have two. One for any administrative positions I apply for, because I have experience as an Office Manager and one for a teaching position, as I was a preschool teacher for over ten years of my life.

But my current dilemma was as a freelance writer. I'm not looking for a "day job" but I am looking for more writing jobs or possibly a position in the writing or publishing business.

If you're a freelancer, chances are that you

(a) work from home, and

(b) your employment history (current or former) may have little relationship to your writing skills.

So what do you do about that?

When you know you have the skills to handle a regular writing or editorial position, it becomes a challenge to prove it. So how do you convince an employer?

In a typical freelance writing situation, you will want to consider developing a "skills" resume instead.

A Skills resume is a perfectly acceptable alternative to the chronological resume, enabling you to focus on the skills and experience that are directly relevant to the job for which you're applying.

Next entry...getting started.

Related Articles:

Writer's Resume

Help! I Need a Writer's Resume

Beginning a Writers Resume Part One

Beginning a Writers Resume Part Two

Where's Everything Go? Why Don't You Write Anymore?

Hey friends!

I know many of you are wondering where the posts went, and why I haven't been around on this blog much lately, and let me explain.

I got a job writing for www.families.com and that is where all my scrapbooking, adoption and frugal living posts go now. So if you are looking for any of those, hop on over there and vist me at my families.com blog!


I have also been working on getting the ScribblesNScraps website back up and it is undergoing some changes. But it's on it's way and is scheduled to be up and running smoothly by the end of July. The blog that ScribblesNScraps contains will transfer over from this one - the writing blog - since writing has become my means of employment!


In additon, I got my Richmont Direct website back up and running, so if you are interested in any products, check it out.
I will be updating it soon with our new supplements and a brand new printer ink product section we have.

In the meantime, the most current information is found at families.com and I hope to see you there!

Love, Nicole